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Chapter 4

DRACO

Rounding the corner, Hermione let out a little squeak as we came across a floor strewn with glass fragments. She took out her wand, repairing the glass cabinet that had broken, puking up all the trophies in the process.

Searching for the source of the crash, we turned to see an open window. It was a blustery day outside, and great gusts of wind emerged from the window, seeking out their next victim.

She turned toward me, telling me to help her pick up the trophies and metals that had been distributed among the hallway. I nodded, stooping down to grab an old Quiditch metal.

"James Potter, seeker."

I had a hard time containing my groan of annoyance. Why must Potter and his family-his DEAD family, I might add-be everywhere I looked? There were plenty of other extraordinary families out there, all of the family members still alive, doing extraordinary things, just waiting under the noses of society to be discovered. Take my family, for example. We may not seem like it, but we were a pretty intriguing bunch! Part veela, friends with the minister of magic, extremely rich, charming, and powerful. Yet we were not known by every bloody wizarding family out there! No, that was Potter! Why must he always get everything?

"Malfoy?" Hermione asked, most likely wondering why I had simply frozen in place, an unhappy frown on my face. I smiled at her, and continued to pick up the ancient scraps of metal.

Another chilling wind was blown throughout the room, causing Hermione and me to shiver. Hermione walked over to the rusty, unused window, a glint of determination in her warm brown eyes. Trying to close the ancient window herself proved difficult for Hermione, so I lent a helping hand, a prominent smirk branded onto my face. She shivered again, and I felt the urge to give her my jacket.

No, that would be too awkward. We'd only just become...friends? I wasn't exactly sure what to call this newfound, almost nice treatment of each other...

Hermione seemed to be lost in another world, staring out the window as if she could see something. I snapped my fingers and she immediately gained focus, blushing a little at the closeness.

"Come on, we've got to get to Transfiguration." She said a slight blush still lingering across her cheekbones.

Walking down the halls with one of my former sworn enemies didn't turn out too badly, after all...

Hermione was gracious, she didn't mention anything else about remedial potions, even though that had to have shocked her more than she let on.

I stole a look at her from the corner of my eye. She seemed to feel my gaze, causing me to quickly drop my eyes to the ground, admiring the dust. Did Filch ever do anything around here but pet Mrs. Norris? Hogwarts was going to the dogs, as I often said, but never really meant...until now...

Reaching the Transfiguration room, Hermione turned to me, unleashing the full power of her molten chocolate eyes on me, making me have to remind myself to breathe.

"What's our excuse?" She asked me, a slight grin on her face.

I hadn't heard a word of what she said, obviously, my attention focused on the way her lovely full lips moved when she spoke, imaging pressing mine to hers, just for a moment...

Shaking my head slightly, I tried to clear my brain of the unsightly thoughts. "Um, what?" I asked, returning back to planet Earth.

"Our excuse?" She said, throwing a puzzled look at me, probably thinking I was mentally handicapped or something, considering she'd never really tried to have an intelligent conversation with me before.

"Oh yes, an excuse. Just tell her the truth, we had some prefect duties to attend to."

She seemed a little surprised that I would resort to honesty, but she nodded her head anyway, giving me a ghost of a smile.

'I wish I could make her smile like she does with Potter and Weasley...she just doesn't trust me enough...yet...'

A plan was forming in my mind as I held the door open for her. She accidentally brushed against my arm, and I felt a flash of heat begin to crawl up and down my arm, making it tingle slightly.

I saw pot-head Potter throw her a shocked look as we strode in together, feeling a smug look cross over my face. She threw me another small smile and I returned the favor, turning a few Gryffindor and Slytherine heads in the process.

I didn't know what anything that happened meant, but I knew how I felt about it. I liked it. I liked her. I didn't know what changed, but I couldn't deny liking her. Maybe I would've liked her all along, if I just looked past the muggle-born, know-it-all facade she put on with everybody. But I hadn't bothered, until now.

Hermione

I felt as though somebody had just turned on a heater when I accidentally brushed against Draco's arm. At least, I thought it was an accident. I could feel me cheeks burning as I took my customary seat next to Harry, trying not to look at Ronald.

Things were still awkward between the two of us, and I blamed myself for all of it. I fooled myself into thinking that he liked me. I tried to wish it into reality. But there was a point where you have to wake up and face the truth. I had just stumbled across it, and it made me fully understand what it meant when people said, "the truth hurts."

But Ron and his crush on Lavender also opened up my eyes to other things. The way George's eyes sparkled when we talked, the way Draco tried to be something he wasn't. The way I was falling for them both...

Author's note:

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Little Miss English Nerd